There is an ingrained expectation at the Eurovision Song Contest that pop music is a constructed affair –  rock and indie acts at Eurovision provide a bit of cognitive dissonance – how do we judge these songs against the big pop productions? Many sub genres of rock, country, rap and indie prize the authenticity of […]

Six days into rehearsals, many of the journalists are feeling no wiser about the potential winners than we did at the start. With the betting odds in constant flux, what conclusions can we draw at this crucial stage?

As Eurovision has distanced itself from live music, where can performers find opportunities to stretch their creative legs and experiment? Samantha Ross takes a moment to reflect on where artists can find little bastions of freedom in their otherwise-regimented three minutes on stage.

A huge run today with all of the first semi-finalists on stage, plus France and Spains’ Globen debut. Ewan Spence is joined by Samantha Ross (ESC Insight) and Gavin Lambert (ESCtips) on ESC Insight’s daily podcast.

As the second wave of rehearsals are fast upon us, it is time for another edition of the ESC Insight Newsletter. We review the last four days of wonders and woes on stage, and highlight all of ESC Insight’s output in one place. Robertson’s Reflection looks at the peril of asking singers to perform their song in interviews.

Day five of rehearsals finds the artists from the first semi final tightening up their stage shows, while the journalists in the Press Centre take to mainlining Swedish Fika to get through the marathon days…